Fischer hits 75 wins and 50 pins

Owatonna’s Aliah Fischer is just a sophomore on the Huskies’ wrestling roster, but she’s already the program’s leader in girls’ all-time wins and pins.

Last week, she continued to cement her legacy by scoring her 75^th win, adding another major accomplishment on top of already surpassing 50 pins this season.

“I didn’t actually know it was my 75^th win. I feel like that helped me because reaching milestones like that, it just felt like another match… I was like, ‘Oh, OK. I have 75 varsity wins, that’s cool.’ When I saw coach [Derek] Johnson and [Gabe] Hovden, I was like, ‘Wow, I actually did it,’” said Fischer on her special moment at center mat.

Her most recent match against Rochester Mayo was a smooth first-round pin that helped her hit the milestone mark.

The sophomore had previously set herself up in prime position to achieve the mark by finishing a tournament in Bemidji 7-0 to improve her total to 74 wins.

Fischer’s big moment may have caught her off guard, but her parents, Alicia and Ryan, were far from surprised.

The duo has compiled an Excel spreadsheet of all of her matches and even potential future matchups, showcasing their passion for the sport and their pride in their daughter.

“It was just fulfilling with everything that she’s been through these past few years. It’s fun to be there for those milestones while she’s healthy.. I’ve seen her grow as an athlete and watched how wrestling has shaped her. She’s officiating matches when she’s not wrestling herself. She’s kept herself involved with the sport as much as possible, and it’s really helped her game,” said Ryan Fischer.

Fischer’s career as a Husky began earlier than most as she took the mats at the varsity level as a seventh grader and worked her way to state in her debut season.

Fast-forward to today, the Huskies’ sophomore has been to state in all three of her seasons so far and is eyeballing a chance to improve upon her career-best fourth place finish that she earned at the Grand Casino Arena last year.

As it stands, Fischer’s current varsity record is 75-13 with 59 pins.

Her winning trajectory over the years has kept her in the hunt for state title in every season, even when injuries have tried to slow her down.

Fischer has already rehabbed multiple ankle injuries including torn ligaments that required surgery, but this season she has had to battle back from a gruesome hip dislocation that kept her off the mats leading into the beginning of the year.

“It was really hard to even get my mindset right. It still is now, knowing that it could happen again at any moment. There’s no guarantee that it’s never going to happen. It’s scary, but going through when it all happened, I have to look at it like, “I’ve made it this far. I have to keep going.’ To go from being in a hospital bed for a couple hours with my hip out, to wrestling again now just a couple months later, it’s a lot,” said Fischer.

According to her father, Ryan, her mentality and personality are perfect compliments when it comes to wrestling.

“She’s determined, sassy and full of piss and vinegar most days,” said he said with a laugh.

According to girls coach Hovden, her commitment to the sport has always stuck out to the coaching staff.

“For the past few years, every milestone she hits is a great feeling… She’s only a sophomore, but she is one of the leaders in our room. I’ve asked her to step in and help with our girls-only practices. She is the front-runner for our program in Owatonna. She’s been around in our room the longest out of all of our girls, despite still being an underclassman,” said Hovden.

Fischer and the Huskies’ girls team will wrestle next at Simley High School on Friday, Jan. 23 at 5 p.m.